Matt Helm
"Hedgehog signaling mediates interferon-gamma induced mesenchymal stem cell proliferation and recruitment to the stomach"

Audrey Deitrich
"Identification of pathogenic and non-pathogenic skin flora on equipment used by the Manchester University football team in the fall of 2012"

Tiffany York
"Examination of Flute, Saxophone, and Trumpet for S. aueres, B cerues, and N. mucosa."

Ben Cloud
Ben Cloud researched chickadee hybridization with Dr. Short in 2012. His goal was to determine the boundaries of the hybrid zone between Black-capped chickadees and Carolina chickadees. Using microsatellite markers, he determined the extent of hybridization in four chickadee populations spread over a 70km North-South transect in Northern Indiana. He compared his genetic data with morphological data collected 30 years ago, and found that the chickadee hybrid zone has widened and shifted northward in the last 30 years. Future studies will aim to monitor the hybrid zone and possibly identify mechanisms for its shift.

Sarah Curry
Sarah Curry, an environmental studies and biology major (Class of 2010), received recognition at the 2011 annual meeting of the Indiana Chapter of the Wildlife Society. Sarah’s research “Examination of Northern Saw-whet Owl (Aegolius acadicus) fall migration patterns in North Central Indiana” was voted best research paper presented at the 2010 spring meeting. Sarah received funding to study northern saw-whet owls during the fall of 2009 and captured and banded 35 owls during the 2009 banding season. This is a long-term project that is conducted each fall at the Koinonia Biological Field Station owned and operated by Manchester University.